US and EU Sign Pact to Secure Critical Minerals

The United States and the European Union signed a memorandum of understanding and a separate trade action plan on April 24, 2026, in Washington, DC, to coordinate the supply of critical minerals. The agreement targets the entire value chain, including exploration, extraction, processing, refining, and recycling, to secure materials vital for semiconductors, electric vehicle batteries, and advanced weaponry.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič formalized the partnership to counter China's market dominance and the use of mineral processing as geo-economic leverage. To mitigate non-market practices such as export curbs and price suppression, the partners will explore coordinated subsidies, stockpiling cooperation, joint research investments, and border-adjusted price floors.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced the joint action plan to align trade policies and establish long-term offtake agreements. This initiative follows similar U.S. frameworks established with Japan, Mexico, and Australia. The long-term objective is to expand these bilateral efforts into a binding plurilateral agreement among like-minded global partners to ensure supply chain resilience against economic coercion.